


Wild cats Sanctuary

by Aurum_Ann



Category: Original Work
Genre: Cute, Gen, Self-Discovery, South Africa, baby cheetas, realistic fiction, they chirp like chicks, volunteering
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-04
Updated: 2020-03-04
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:54:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23015851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aurum_Ann/pseuds/Aurum_Ann
Summary: Cameron accepted his grandma's challenge to volunteer in a Rescue Center for endangered animals, because she said it would help him find out what to do after graduating from school. She had said volunteering would transform him, but that was not what he was expecting.





	Wild cats Sanctuary

Taking a deep breath, Cameron rolled his shoulders back and wiped the sweat off his chin, marking it with a muddy line. Across the field, he could see Avery and Reuben finish closing the last sack of dirty hay. They all looked at each other and grinned: one more successful day.

About a month before, if asked, Cameron would have said his favourite part of the day was videogaming with his friends and brother. However, a lot can change in a month, and he doesn’t hesitate to reveal bath time is hands down the best time ever. His grandma had said volunteering would transform him, but that was not what he was expecting.

Although, he had to admit that wasn’t the only change.

Traveling all the way down to South Africa was his grandma’s idea. She had always been quite eccentric, and when young, took a life changing trip to help at a wild animal sanctuary. She said it made her see the world through new eyes. When Cameron told her about not knowing what to do with his life after sixth form, even though he had had good grades, she showed him a volunteer project site and told him she would give him an early birthday present: two months away at a rescue farm from the Wild Cats Sanctuary Coalition. He looked it up and took the challenge.

The rescue farm he chose was in South Africa, bed and food included, and along with other wild animals, it had a cheetahs breeding program, which meant they had baby cheetahs in site – obvious choice. His self-discovery journey started with a finalizing click, and a ton of first experiences.

First first: flying in an airplane. Cameron had never had to do it before, and since he was going alone, that was extra scary. He stuttered a lot through checking in his bags, getting in and off the plane, and through immigration, but all in all it wasn’t so bad. Being in a plane felt so normal he was a bit disappointed.

After leaving the airport, in the taxi, he heard the South African accent for the first time. It wasn’t too different, just enough that his brain would refuse to understand half the words.

He arrived at the farm at noon. Several people greeted him, which surprised him a great deal. He hadn’t thought volunteering was such a popular activity, but he could see about a dozen other people wearing the same blue t-shirt he was given, and name badges. The others were all staff. He got introduced to everybody and given a plate full of food.

Although he did help prepare food for the animals, the real work only started the next morning. After a night full of weird noises, and a filling breakfast, Cameron got paired with Avery, a dark-skinned teenager who wore a tank top with baby Yoda’s face, and an American woman named Zoe. As his first job, they were instructed how to make a sort of puzzle to the parrots, with some string and bottle caps. They put seeds and fruits between two bottle caps, so that it became some sort of box, and the birds had to try to open it to get them. They spent great part of their morning crafting, then Cameron joined other two volunteers and together they prepared a meal for the wild dogs.

He found out that the farm housed ten wild dogs. They were brought in for multiple reasons, and all of them were on their way to recovery and to being released back into their habitat. Same went for many of the animals they had there. Some had arrived very young and had to be taught how to use their hunting instincts. Tasneen, the farm’s director, explained they tried to keep these cubs as wild as they could, accustoming them to humans just enough so that they would form bonds and learn from their caretakers. The cubs born to the breeding project had their mothers, but human contact was still needed, as their vets had to make sure they were growing up healthily. It was a fragile equilibrium to maintain.

The cheetah cubs, Cameron found, were the stars of his whole vacation. Besides already being adorable for being cats, when they open they little mouths… they chirp! Like chicks! Cameron never spent much time at the same activity, but he treasured every single moment he had at cheetah care. Even the cleaning of their space and the food preparation. They were – no surprise – his favourite cats.

The youngest litter came in a little while before he arrived at the farm. They were rescued from smuggled to be sold as pets. Many cheetahs face their deaths that way – taken from their mothers, they generally don’t make it to their second birthday. Even after being rescued, they run many risks. Cheetah cubs need lots of attention, medical and affection wise.

Cameron, other volunteers and the main caretaker Haajara all bottle-fed the chirping trio at least twice each. They fur was the softest! The volunteers could also play with them, with their toys. Their claws were already sharp, and they were incredibly strong to animals so small. They were wild animals.

He got to witness a cheetah family being released back into the forest. The feeling – he doesn’t have enough words to describe it. His heart burst with happiness as the mother cheetah led her children to the wild. He might have cried a little. All the work put into saving them – Talula, the mother, and one of the cubs had been hurt in a fight, the vets had explained, and because their species was endangered, they stepped in and took them to the farm. Now, they had the gratifying experience of freeing them safe and sound.

He was there to help teach visitors about their work at the rescue farm, and the Coalition’s purpose. He received new volunteers and watched as other returned home. He shared his bedroom with a Spanish man who couldn’t speak English very well, a young Canadian man who had come with his fiancée, and with a loud choir kid who had decided to tag along with a friend. He shared his food with strangers and cooked to them. He made friends from everywhere around the world.

Most importantly, he found himself. There, in South Africa, in a farm, surrounded by recovering animals and strangers, he found himself.

He found that he would be extremely happy doing just that – caring for these animals – for the rest of his life. Wildlife was endangered, and he would love to be able to help more. Cameron came to that conclusion cleaning the dogs’ space and laying new hay on the ground for them. He wasted no time, and the next time he saw the vet team, he asked outright how to become one of them: is there a specification, a master’s degree? Where did they graduate? How do they feel about their job?

From his time volunteering in South Africa, he took back more than just a certificate: friendships, contacts, experiences to never forget, and priceless memories that shaped him though his bachelor and vet school, and though life.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked!


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